Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2008-09: Ben Hanowski completed his senior of high school in Little Falls, Minnesota with 73 goals and 62 assists in only 31 games. On top of becoming the highest scoring player in Minnesota high school history, Hanowski was also nominated for the prestigious Minnesota Mr. Hockey award. Hanowski was chosen in the third round, 63rd overall, of the 2009 NHL Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

2009-10: Ben Hanowski made the move to college hockey, suiting up in 43 games with St. Cloud State, registering 9 goals and 10 assists as a freshman.

2010-11: Although an improvement over last season, Hanowski had a relatively disappointing sophomore season, producing 13 goals and 7 assists in 37 games. The only place he really excelled was playing on the man-advantage.

2011-12: Hanowski was the leading scorer for St. Cloud State as a junior. In 39 games he had a team-high 23 goals with 20 assists and was plus-two with 25 penalty minutes. Seven of his 23 goals were scored on the Huskies power play. Fighting to stay above .500 most of the season, the Huskies finished sixth in the WCHA and ended the season 17-17-5 after falling to North Dakota in the WCHA Final Five quarterfinal game.

2012-13: Hanowski joined the Flames following his senior season at St. Cloud State — scoring a goal in his first NHL game. The goal, in a 4-3 loss to Minnesota on April 15th, was his only point in five games and he finished the season with an even plus/minus; averaging 13:17 minutes of ice time. The Flames acquired Hanowski from Pitttsburgh in March 2013 as part of the Jarome Iginla trade and signed him to a two-year entry-level contract in April. Hanowski had a memorable senior season as the Huskies finished tied with Minnesota for first place during the regular season and were the only western team to reach the Frozen Four. Hanowski played in 37 of 42 games for St. Cloud, missing time in November with an upper body injury. He was second on the team with 17 goals and had 14 assists; finishing +1 with 18 penalty minutes.

2013-14: Hanowski was recalled by the Flames in March — appearing in 11 NHL games — and spent most of his first pro season with Calgary AHL affiliate Abbotsford. He had 2 assists and was -2 with 2 penalty minutes, averaging 7:14 minutes of ice time with the Flames. Hanowski scored 13 goals with 18 assists and was +1 with 18 penalty minutes in 55 regular season games for Abbotsford. The Heat finished second in the West Division before losing to Grand Rapids in a first round series. In four playoff games Hanowski had 1 assist and was -3 with 2 penalty minutes. Hanowski was tendered a qualifying offer by Calgary and re-signed to a one-year contact as a restricted free agent in July 2014.

Talent Analysis

Ben Hanowski is an offensively-minded, goal-scoring forward who brings a mix of size, skill, and character to the rink. The Minnesota native possesses uncanny vision and does his best work when the puck is on his stick. A shooter by trade, Hanowski has solid puck-distribution abilities and can create either off the cycle or on the rush. He possesses solid size and supple hands but needs to gain more explosiveness in his first step and learn to play a simpler, north-south type of game. He sometimes struggles in tighter spaces.

Future

Hanowski attended training camp with the Flames and was assigned to new AHL affiliate Adirondack to start the 2014-15 season. Now in his second pro season, he is among the AHL club's leaders in goals but has been a streak scorer. Long-term he projects as a sound, second or third line forward but to crack the NHL level he will likely need more consistency.

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